Like standing in the bed of a pickup truck doing 160kph (100mph) on the highway. A highway through a scenic dive site.
Location: Komodo, Indonesia
Difficulty: Intermediate / Advanced
Maximum depth: 24 meters / 78 feet
Best for: Batshit-crazy current
Getting Into The Shotgun
You don’t ease into a shotgun. You jam it into your shoulder, lean in and hope your back foot is planted. Lead your target. Let the explosion surprise you.
Komodo’s Shotgun is no different.
I did this ludicrous thrill ride of a “drift” dive twice with Dragon Dive Komodo. It was better the second time and I would do it over and over if I could.
The dive briefing made damn sure we knew what kind of insane currents we were in for. The site is basically two parts: a cauldron with a wall at the back known as The Shotgun. You swim across the cauldron, find a spot on the wall to hold on for your life, “experience the current,” then push off and get shot out like a cannon.
The guides showed us how the surface water changed texture due to the currents – which made entry timing critical. Miss your window and you’re blown away from the entry point, as happened with our day boat group the first time.
The Dive Experience
The first part is deceptively calm – a sandy bowl dotted with healthy coral heads around 18-21 meters. You swim normally, enjoying vibrant marine life. It’s honestly quite relaxing.
Then you reach the underwater desert at 24 meters. Zero growth – the current blows everything away. Here you feel the first hints of what’s coming as you work toward a staging area where young barracuda do endless laps, grabbing snacks that fly by.
At the back looms the wall. Current gets squeezed by the bowl sides and slams into it like a disaster movie. You can deflate your BCD and stick to the sandy floor, using a perfectly placed rock for assistance.
Getting to the wall top is like a combat helicopter landing – identify your spot, spin while doing 30kph, crank up and grab the wall. My dive computers exploded with fast-ascent alarms as current pushed me up faster than 25 meters per minute.
The Main Event
Now you’re on top of the wall in The Shotgun’s breach.
You hold on for dear life. Regulator hoses buzz from current tearing at them. Your bubbles don’t go up – they get blown behind you like smoking a cigar in a hurricane.
A low roar surrounds you, like being stuck in a barreling wave. Even through my neoprene hood, you’re immersed in the sound of a freight train that never finishes passing.
Your arms burn. Clinging to The Shotgun is more like hanging from a cliff than laying on top looking over the edge. Release one hand for your GoPro and the burning intensifies – the current pulls at your camera like an excited puppy playing tug of war.
Just holding on has you breathing like 20 minutes into a StairMaster workout. All that work and only your heart rate is going anywhere.
The current even makes it hard to keep your feet down, sneaking under you and lifting your fins. If you forgot to deflate your BCD (I did the first time), you get a lower back workout trying to keep your legs down.
Otherwise, you just watch:
- Your dive buddy’s face rippling in the current
- Fish fighting like hell while questioning their life choices
- Barracuda doing laps, every one better at current than you
- A white tip reef shark casually sauntering through, completely unaffected by current trying to rip your gear off
Then the guide signals it’s time to go. You push off and up, strike the primer and get fired from The Shotgun like a 10 gauge slug.
It’s chaos. It’s controlled. It’s Komodo.
Why The Shotgun Stands Out
I’ve been in strong currents before – at least I thought I had. But Komodo is a different beast.
The Shotgun is world-famous for current pegged at 11. On really good days, it’s a full-blown Napalm Death set in a washing machine.
But it’s also stunning. The beginning and end are calm and serene. That soul-bending current fades into a remarkably healthy reef that drinks from a firehose of nutrients. Heart-pumping chaos wrapped in stillness.
Quick Intel
Current: Ripping to plaid
Visibility: 25m+ (some of the best in Komodo)
Best Time: Falling tide, April-October dry season
Getting There: 34km west from Labuan Bajo (3-hour boat ride)
Would I dive it again? I was ready as soon as we got out of the water. Surface interval? Who needs that?
Want the Full Deep Dive?
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